Midvalley Mall

Kuala Lumpur Travel Blog

BreakfastOkay, so breakfast was in Kajang and not in KL, but I'm not going to create a separate journal entry just for breakfast. I had breakfast at the fantastic Oldtown Coffee houses that are absolutely incredible. They are like the Starbucks of Asia (although I am aware they have Starbucks in Asia), in that they serve coffee and tea, as well as standard breads and such, but also Asian fare like rice, laksa and curries to get the day started. I had my favourite kaya toast and an Oldtown Original coffee, and then we were on our way to Mid Valley Megamall.

Mid ValleyThis mall doesn't disappoint - it says it's one of the largest in the Southern Hemisphere and I'm quite ready to believe it.

Chicken and bacon dish at San Francisco Steak House

Everywhere you turn there is something else and I think even my day there didn't allow me the time to fully appreciate it all. Sure, if you're not into shopping it would be a bit of a 'meh' place to go, but the architecture, the designs for Chinese New Year with all the red ribbons and lanterns were incredible. You could walk through here and be entertained even if there was no shopping involved whatsoever. But if you do like shopping, there are over 430 shops there for the taking. The place is open from 10:00am - 10:00pm so you're covered for pretty much whenever you want to go.

We went into the San Francisco Steakhouse for some lunch, where I had the most delicious piece of chicken wrapped in bacon on a sweet roll, followed by a fattening chocolate sundae. My mouth waters when I think of it. Although probably one of the more expensive places we could have had lunch (100RM or so for three of us), we paid for the service which was all in English as it's an American-style establishment designed in a stereotypical steakhouse fashion, and the huge servings of food.

I want more of this....

I had to take it slow for a while after eating as I was completely stuffed.

Some of the shops of note in here were the Jackie Chan Fitness gym, MPH bookstores (where you can get manga and travel books quite cheap, and the plethora of clothing outlets where you can pick up anything on the cheap. I got myself a pair of sandals (good ones too) for just 20RM, and a few shirts for not much more than that. I also went to Speedy's and bought another lot of cheap DVD's, but hey, when in Rome... or in this case, Mid Valley. I picked up a Singapore travel guide in MPH for about 70% of the price it would be in Australia. Not a massive saving, but a saving nonetheless.

The Centre Court area of MidValley is where it really shines, with amazing CNY decorations from floor to ceiling, and little performances there every so often (which I missed).

Centre Court - Mid Valley Mega Mall

There's a lot of stalls around at this time selling things from decorated eggs and jewellery, to your own name on a Chinese stamp.

After this shopping spree,it was back home to check the wallet and have a break before going out for Felicia's cousins birthday that night.

Birthday DinnerFor her cousins birthday, we went to a local Chinese restaurant in Kajang and had a typical Chinese dinner with lots of rice and many beef, fish, and chicken dishes. One thing I can't stand is when food looks like what it does before it became food. In this case, it was a pig that still had its head, and a fish that seemed to be screaming at me for help. I couldn't bring myself to eat it, and had to look down at my plate not to be put off. Shark's fin soup was also served here, and unfortunately not being a seafood person couldn't eat this either. Nevertheless I got through without much trouble and had a good time.

There was this vegetable noodle dish served up on a big plate, that everyone stuck their chopsticks in and tossed around real good. I'm not sure of the significance, but it appears to be a good luck thing to do around CNY. The little things like this you may not get a chance to do unless you hang with the locals, so if you can, I suggest you do, for a real Malaysian experience. I remember when I was there, there were these two little Chinese girls who seemed intrigued by a westerner being in the same restaurant as them. I gave them a few smiles and they would shyly smile back - communication without language. Just the little things like this make travelling that all more worth while. I'm sure I'm not the only one!

SummaryToday's summary is:- Oldtown Coffee is the best place for breakfast (or a snack, or lunch, or dinner!)- Check your wallet when you go to Mid Valley, because you will need it!- Centre Court in Mid Valley is beautiful, especially around celebratory times like CNY or Christmas- San Francisco Steakhouse for a truly American lunch or dinner.- Hook up with a local and try a local restaurant. There may be no English menus here, but it's certainly an experience you won't forget.- Smile! Even if it doesn't get you anywhere, you'll always make someone else smile, too.